Nanotechnology General News

(Nanowerk News) Nanometrics Incorporated, a leading supplier of advanced process control metrology systems used primarily in the manufacturing of semiconductors, solar photovoltaics and high-brightness LEDs, today announced a follow-on order for an Atlas® metrology system equipped with NanoCD™ capability. The system was qualified for production in the second quarter of this year to a leading hard drive manufacturer as part of its plan for Nanometrics’ technology to support both film thickness and optical critical dimension (OCD) metrology in the production of advanced magnetic heads.

“With the added capability of our NanoCD, we have seen our customers expand Atlas system capabilities to increase process monitoring and use cases with additional metrology steps previously not possible with legacy technologies,” commented Nagesh Avadhany, Vice President of Applications at Nanometrics. “Our customers are specifically deploying our Atlas systems to monitor critical process profile parameters, many of which can only be observed non-destructively by OCD technology. Our OCD technology is increasingly being deployed to replace more costly, slower and destructive cross-section SEM techniques.”

Nanometrics has deployed OCD solutions in every segment of the fab including lithography, etch, chemical mechanical polishing (CMP) and thin film deposition, and across all device types including logic, DRAM, flash memory, and magnetic heads.

About Nanometrics

Nanometrics is a leader in the design, manufacture and marketing of high-performance process control metrology systems used primarily in the manufacturing of semiconductors, solar photovoltaics and high-brightness LEDs, as well as by customers in the silicon wafer and data storage industries. Nanometrics standalone and integrated metrology systems measure various thin film properties, critical dimensions, overlay control and optical, electrical and material properties, including the structural composition of silicon, compound semiconductor and photovoltaic devices, during various steps of the manufacturing process. These systems enable device manufacturers to improve yields, increase productivity and lower their manufacturing costs. The company maintains its headquarters in Milpitas, California, with sales and service offices worldwide.